"A guilty man set free on the account of another, is that justice? No that’s grace" Caleb & Sol

13 July 2014

THE SOLUTION TO A TROUBLED HEART

John
14:1-6

Everywhere
you look we see people with troubled hearts! A troubled
heart occurs when it comes to….

Loss of job

Health issues

Death

Lack of money

Bills

Divorce

With rising
crime rate, rising costs of living

The major
problems happening in the Middle East between Israel and Hamas.

The intolerant
Homosexual movement.

The major
rise of porn exposure at such young ages.

Stealing and
Pirating music and movies

Political
corruption.

The killing
of innocent life in the womb.

The massive
breakdown of the family unit.

Fighting
amongst genuine Christians.

Complacency
and apathy in the church today

And the list
is endless to a troubled heart in any generation.

In the book
of Job we read "Man who is born of woman Is of few days and full of
trouble.” Job 14:1. See, being born in
sin; sin and trouble go together, where there is sin there is trouble; sin
entered into the world and there is
only one cure for the troubled heart! J C Ryle said “that disease is trouble of
heart, That remedy is faith.” Heart trouble
is common everywhere around the globe in our generation. Kent Hughes
calls it the “The Cardiac age”. The heart is
a wonderful creation. It beat an average of 75 beats a minute, 40 millions
times a year, 21/2 billions time for a person of 70. It pumps enough blood
(650,000 gallon a year) to fill more than 82 tank cars with 8,000 gallons each. Many of us in
this sanctuary have troubled hearts today! The question is
what are you doing about it? Better yet, who are you turning to? It’s no
wonder we have so many health problems in our culture today. Studies show
according to Harvard Health Publication wrote “Anxiety has now been implicated
in several chronic physical illnesses, including heart disease, chronic
respiratory disorders, and gastrointestinal conditions.” A troubled
heart can at times play a factor in our heath! When we
constantly worry about everything we sometimes cause ourselves to worry about
things that haven’t happened yet. We sometimes
make up worry in our thoughts and even have the tendency to borrow worry. But Jesus
said “"Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will
eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not
life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the
air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly
Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by
worrying can add one cubit to his stature? "So why do you worry about
clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil
nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not
arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which
today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe
you, O you of little faith? "Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall
we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear? For after all these
things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all
these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all
these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for
tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own
trouble.” Matt 6:25-34.

Look what
Jesus says to His disciples here in John’s gospel. (v1) He says “Let not your heart
be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.” “Troubled”means: “uncertain
affinity; to stir or agitate” The effects
of all that Jesus had told them must have shocked them, and by John 14 they
were undoubtedly confused, baffled and filled with anxiety. They have
been told there is one who is a betrayer among them. He has already
said He is going to be handed over to the Romans and die a sinner’s death. He has confronted
Peter with the truth that he is going to deny Him. And to top it
off! Jesus says He’s leaving them in a while and they can’t follow Him until
later on. This was a
troubled room filled with men of anxiety who left everything to follow Jesus. As our Lord
looked at these men, He knew what was going on in their minds and hearts, He knew how
disturbed and upset they were, and knew what was causing it. He also knew
the remedy for it, as well. (v1-v6)

First thing
Jesus says is "Let
not." This means
that the disciples could nothing to solve their problem. There is
truly only one remedy for a troubled and sinful heart! The Lord Jesus and the
promise He brings. This passage
is one the most comforting
passagesin all of scripture! It has said
that F.B. Myers of England
had a Bible that had been passed through many generations. He said, many of the
pages were clean just like the day it came from the printing press. But the
pages of John 14 worn, spotted with tears of the people who had read it and
found the comfort of God. That is so
true! We can find great comfort throughout the scriptures, but we find great
comfort here in this passage of John’s letter!

This is why
Jesus says what He says. Don’t let
this world and the coming days worry or trouble you! You trust in God, trust in
Me, as well and the promises I bring.

See the
problem is our sin nature of disbelief! We tend to
think of the worst; we tend to get ourselves worked up when we’re faced with
challenges, disappointments and confrontations. We tend to
shut down and curl up in the fetal position waiting for things to pass. We tend to
explode in the midst of trouble like a child does when they don’t get what they
want. In reality
its sin! John
MacArthur said “The Worrier Strikes Out at God, The Worrier Disbelieves
Scripture, The Worrier Is Mastered by Circumstances, The Worrier Distrusts God,
Worry Is Unwise Because of Our Future”……He went on to say “Worrying paralyzes
you, making you too upset to accomplish anything productive. It will seek to do
that to you by taking you mentally into tomorrow until you find something to
worry about. Refuse to go along for the ride. The Lord says you have enough to
deal with today. Apply today's resources to today's needs or you will lose
today's joy.”

The Psalmist
wrote “Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let
the righteous fall.” Psalm 55:22; 1 Peter 5:6-8
says “Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift
you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Be
self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring
lion looking for someone to devour.” In other
words, our worry leads us astray and allows Satan a foothold into our lives. Since “sin” is,
at its core, “missing the mark” that
God has set for us, and so worrying is not living up to God’s standard. Jesus
comforts His disciples with the promise in (v2-v3) There are
many dwelling places; there are many beds for you in my house, what Jesus is
saying. Jesus says “I go to prepare” a
bed for you and me, His called out ones a place that John describes in Revelation 21-22as absolutely AWESOME! A place
that………

Is filled
with the glory of God.

A place that
has no more tears.

Has no more
death.

Has no more
sorrow, trouble.

Has no more
pain.

We will never
thirst again physically or spiritually.

God
illuminates His glorious light for all eternity.

That has
Christ sitting on the throne in His entire supreme splendor.

That has your
name in a book, if you are truly His child.

This is a place
called Heaven, a place that we cannot fathom in our finite minds to how
beautiful it is and glorious it will be for you and me when we spend eternity
with Christ. Heaven is so
overwhelming of a place, that it caused the Apostle Paul to pen these words “For to me,
to live is Christ, and to die is gain. But if I live on in the flesh, this will
mean fruit from my labor; yet what I shall choose I cannot tell. For I am hard-pressed[it’s like a tug of war at
my heart strings]between the
two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better.” Phil
1:21-23. Jesus knew
the importance of this place! Otherwise He wouldn’t’ have told us as we face
obstacles or troubled hearts! In this life
you will have trouble, but be of good cheer, I’ve overcome them! In John
16:33, Jesus said “These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have
peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have
overcome the world."

See, this is
a promise that cannot be taken away for those who are truly His and what’s more
amazing Jesus uses four wordsof
comfort for the troubled Christian. (v3)“I will come again” doesn’t
that give you comfort when you’re troubled at heart? Seriously,
the King of Kings, Alpha & Omega, the Beginning and the End, made this
promise that He is coming back, but not only to come back to judge but to
“receive” us back to Himself. To receive us
and He will take you up with me to Heaven; I will receive you into glory where
he is and always be. But obviously
this didn’t settle the disciple’s hearts because Thomas asks Jesus a question! (v5). But again
Jesus gives yet another confirmation, another word of comfort, so that it would
close any doubt they might have. Look what
Jesus said in (v6) This is what
we would call a dogmatic statement! There is no compromising on a statement
like this. Jesus is the
only one who can grant such a promise as we’ve seen in the opening verses of
this chapter. Let’s examine
for a moment what Jesus is saying by breaking down this bold dogmatic
statement.

Jesus says He
“is the Way”

There is no
other way to find rest in the midst of trouble then Him alone. The Father’s
house in Heaven is only reached through Jesus Christ and His perfecting atoning
work on the cross. Eph 2:18-19
we read “For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father. Now,
therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with
the saints and members of the household of God,”

Jesus says He
“is the Truth”

The root of
all knowledge is to know and savor this truth in Christ. All truth in
the Old Testament and into the New Testament all point to Christ. The only
truth the soul needs is Him, what Jesus is saying is that he isn’t some form of
truth or a truth to equal with whatever you call truth. He is truth
itself, there is no other! John 1:14-17
we read “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory,
the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. John
bore witness of Him and cried out, saying, "This was He of whom I said,
'He who comes after me is preferred before me, for He was before me.' "And
of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. For the law was
given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

Jesus said He
“is the Life”

He is the
root, the source and the foundation of all life. He is not a
life, but life itself, just as He is truth. He is the giver
and taker of life; He is the giver of eternal life to whomever He chooses. In John
11:25-26 we read “Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life.
He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and
believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?"

There is no
other way of escape to find rest for a weary and troubled heart other than
Jesus Christ. There is no
other way a person will ever stand in heaven apart from Christ and His
redeeming love found in the gospel.

Not by your
strength

Not by
another human being

Not by works

Not by your
church attendance and involvement

Not by your
supposed goodness.

As John wrote
in John 1:10-12 “He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and
the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive
Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children
of God, to those who believe in His name. And he even
went on to say in the next verse “who [meaning you and me]
were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” John 1:13. He is the
only way we can find true healing in this life! This is what
he promised the disciples and this is what He promises to us for those you put
their trust in Christ alone. “Sola Christos” As Luke
penned “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under
heaven given among men by which we must be saved." Acts 4:12.

The troubled
heart needs to remember that Jesus is everything! Trials are
part of life, but Christ always says to us in the darkness “do not let your
heart be troubled” As Hudson Taylor
said “There are three stages to every great work of God; first it is
impossible, then it is difficult, then it is done.” I am the
way…..the truth…and Life for those whom are mine! The problem
for us is our sin, the solution is Jesus Christ, and the promises found in the
gospel that not only saves you from the wrath of God…..it saves you a dwelling
place for all eternity with Him. The one and
only Jesus Christ!

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"Radical obediance to Christ is not easy; it is dangerous. It is not smooth sailing aboard a luxury liner; it is sacrificial duty aboard a troop carrier. It's not comfort, not health, not wealth, and not prosperity in this world. Radical obediance to Christ risks losing all these things. But in the end, such risk finds its reward in Christ. and He is more than enough for us." David Platt

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2 Timothy 2:8-14"Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us toa holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began,and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher, which is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that Day what has been entrusted to me.Follow the pattern of the soundwords that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you."ESV

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John MacArthur says . . . " There seems almost no limit to what modern church leaders will do to entice people who aren't interested in worship and preaching. Too many have bought the notion that the church must win people by offering an alternative form of entertainment. Just how far will the church go in competing with Hollywood? A large church in the southwestern United States has installed a half-million dollar special-effects system that can produce smoke, fire, sparks, and laser lights in the auditorium. The church sent staff members to study live special effects at Bally's Casino in Las Vegas. The pastor ended one service by ascending to "heaven" via invisible wires that drew him up out of sight while the choir and orchestra added a musical accompaniment to the smoke, fire, and light show. It was just a typical Sunday show for that pastor: "He packs his church with such special effects as ... cranking up a chain saw and toppling a tree to make a point ... the biggest Fourth of July fireworks display in town and a Christmas service with a rented elephant, kangaroo and zebra. The Christmas show features 100 clowns with gifts for the congregation's children."Shenanigans like that would have been the stuff of Spurgeon's worst nightmares. And even Tozer could not have foreseen the extreme to which evangelicals would go in paying homage to the great god Entertainment. "

What does it mean to live a cross centered life?by Pastor Mike AndrewsWe as Christians know that there is only one road to take. The Bible say's "wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it" (Matt 7:13). Why is there so many people who profess Jesus Christ taking this road? (Phil 3:19) "Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things". The Bible say's the wide road leads to destruction. Which means eternally separated from a HOLY and Sovereign GOD. There is ony one road for GENUINE Christian. And it's the narrow road. A life that is: 1) Self denial2) Caring your cross daily3) Desiring the things of God4) Hating the things that God hates5) Submission and obedience6) Holy living7) Expects any kind of persecution.(Mat 10:22) and you will be hated by all for My name's sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved(1 John 3:13) Do not be surprised, brothers, that the world hates you.A.W. Tozer says "The true follower of Christ will not ask, "If I embrace this truth, what will it cost me?" Rather he will say, "This is truth. God help me to walk in it, let come what may!" (1Pet 4:16-17) Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. For it is time for judgment to begin at the household of God; and if it begins with us, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?We must stand strong in the Gospel of Christ. Holding to His promise of eternal life.
1. A Cross Centered life never is ashamed of His Gospel, for which He suffers,
2. A Cross Centered Life is never ashamed of the name he bears (Christian)
3. Nor of the punishment he endures, but let US, as OUR Lord and Master did, endure the cross.

"God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him." John Piper"Alan Redpathhad two daughters who loved to swarm him when he came home at night. As he came in the door one evening, his little girls ran to meet him. One grabbed his leg and hugged him with all her might. He snatched the other daughter up in his arms. The one squeezing his leg said, "Now, I've got all of Daddy." The daughter in his arms replied, "Yes, but Daddy has got all of me!" Perhaps the question we need to continually ask is, "Does God have all of me?" Alan Redpath

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"Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, "CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE") Gal 3:13. That's why as the great puritan once said "I preach as a dying man,to dying men. Richard Baxter...."